Plot Summary (AQA A-Level English Literature A): Revision Notes
Plot Summary
Overview of the play
Peter Whelan's 1981 drama tells the story of the Accrington Pals battalion during the First World War. The play focuses on the real-life volunteer unit from Accrington, Lancashire—remarkably the smallest town in Britain to form a complete battalion. The narrative structure cleverly shifts between two contrasting worlds: the home front market square where everyday life continues, and the brutal reality of the French trenches. Through this dual perspective, Whelan explores the initial patriotic fervour surrounding enlistment, the challenges faced by those left behind, and culminates in the catastrophic events of 1 July 1916, the first day of the Battle of the Somme.
The play's alternating structure allows audiences to witness both the optimistic beginnings of the war effort and the grim truth of trench warfare, creating a powerful commentary on the gap between expectation and reality during WWI. This dual perspective technique enables Whelan to show simultaneously what the soldiers experience and what their loved ones imagine is happening.
Home front in Accrington (1914-1916)
The play begins in Accrington's lively market square, establishing the community from which the Pals battalion will be drawn. At the centre of this world is May Hassal, a prominent market trader who emerges as a natural leader. She actively encourages local women to support Kitchener's recruitment campaign for the "New Army"—the volunteer force being assembled at the war's outbreak.
The volunteers
The young men of Accrington respond eagerly to the call to arms, enlisting as the 11th Battalion East Lancashire Regiment, known as the Accrington Pals:
- Ralph is May's romantic partner, representing the idealistic young man drawn by promises of adventure
- Arthur Boggis demonstrates fierce loyalty to his comrades
- Tom Hackford, along with his father and son Reggie, shows how entire families were swept up in recruitment fever
- These men are lured by romanticised notions of adventure and camaraderie, not understanding the reality they will face
The volunteers are motivated by romanticised notions of adventure and camaraderie, completely unaware of the brutal reality they will face in the trenches. This gap between expectation and reality becomes one of the play's central tragic themes.
Women on the home front
Whilst the men prepare for war, the women must manage daily life in increasingly difficult circumstances. The play presents a diverse group of female characters:
- May develops into a proto-suffragette figure, organising the women into a self-sufficient collective (she runs a chip stall)
- Sarah is portrayed as flirtatious
- Bertha is characterised by her pious nature
- Eva is a widow navigating life alone
- Annie represents youth facing an uncertain future
These women cope with rationing, gossip, and mounting anxiety as the war drags on. Tensions emerge particularly around Ralph's departure and May's unspoken pregnancy fears, highlighting the personal cost of war on those left behind. Letters and news from the trenches bring both hope and dread, whilst Reggie's enlistment despite his youth underscores the generational divide and pull between patriotic duty and parental concern.
The female characters demonstrate remarkable resilience and adaptability, maintaining the community's fabric while facing their own fears and hardships. May's transformation into a community organiser reflects the broader changes in women's roles during WWI, as they took on responsibilities previously reserved for men.
Trenches and the Somme (1916)
The action shifts dramatically to France, where intercut scenes reveal the harsh reality the Pals endure. Life in the trenches is defined by constant hardship: thick mud, infestations of rats, relentless shelling, and dangerous patrols. The men serve under Sergeant Major Rivers, who must maintain discipline and morale in impossible conditions.
Relationships under strain
The brutal environment places enormous pressure on personal relationships:
- Ralph's thoughts constantly return to May, longing for the life they shared
- Arthur finds comfort and strength through bonding with his fellow soldiers
- Tom experiences increasing anxiety and begins to hallucinate from fear and stress
The psychological toll of trench warfare is vividly portrayed through Tom's deteriorating mental state. His hallucinations represent the broader trauma experienced by soldiers who faced conditions beyond anything their training or imagination had prepared them for.
Flashbacks and contrasts
Through flashback sequences, the play reveals the characters' pre-war lives, creating a stark contrast between youthful optimism and grinding wartime reality. We learn about Ralph and May's passionate relationship, and Tom's unrequited love for Eva. These glimpses of the past emphasise what has been lost and what the men are fighting to preserve.
As preparations begin for the Big Push—the major offensive planned for summer 1916—officers brief the soldiers about a supposedly straightforward advance. They are told that artillery barrages will have destroyed German defences, clearing an easy path forward. This false reassurance adds to the tragedy of what follows.
The Fatal Promise:
The officers assure the Pals that artillery barrages will have destroyed German defences, making their advance easy and safe. This catastrophic miscalculation—or deliberate deception—leads directly to the massacre that follows. The men go "over the top" expecting minimal resistance, only to face fully operational German machine guns.
Climax and devastation (July 1, 1916)
The play reaches its devastating climax at zero hour at Serre, when the Pals go over the top into no man's land. What was promised as a simple advance becomes a slaughter:
- The men charge directly into sustained machine-gun fire
- Artillery barrages have failed to destroy German defences as promised
- Mass casualties occur within minutes
- Hundreds fall, including most of the play's main characters
The Tragedy of Serre:
The first day of the Battle of the Somme (1 July 1916) became the bloodiest day in British military history. The Accrington Pals were virtually wiped out at Serre, with the battalion suffering catastrophic casualties. Of the approximately 700 men who went over the top, 585 were killed, wounded, or missing within the first half hour of the attack.
The aftermath
Back in Accrington's market square, the women wait anxiously for telegrams with news. May receives Ralph's personal effects, a powerful symbol of her shattered dreams and the relationship that will never be. The play shows how entire communities were devastated by the loss of local battalions—the "Pals" system meant that friends, families and neighbours who enlisted together also died together.
Survivors like Rivers reflect on the futile heroism they witnessed. Young Reggie survives but is wounded, representing the damaged generation that must carry forward. The play concludes with May's defiant resolve despite overwhelming grief, suggesting resilience within communal mourning.
The Impact of the Pals System:
While the Pals battalion system created strong bonds of camaraderie and loyalty, it also meant that entire communities could be devastated in a single day. When a Pals battalion suffered heavy casualties, whole streets in their home town could lose all their young men simultaneously, leaving behind grief-stricken families and communities struggling to cope with collective loss.
Whelan's ending powerfully underscores war's irreversible rupture on working-class lives, showing how the conflict destroyed not just individual soldiers but entire communities, their hopes, and their futures.
Key Points to Remember:
- The play uses a dual structure, alternating between home front and trenches to contrast civilian optimism with military reality
- 1 July 1916 is the crucial date—the first day of the Battle of the Somme and the day the Accrington Pals are decimated at Serre
- May Hassal is the central character on the home front, evolving from market trader to community leader and representing women's wartime resilience
- The Pals battalion system meant entire communities enlisted together—creating both strong bonds and devastating collective losses
- The play explores the gap between promise and reality: the men are told the Big Push will be easy, but face massacre instead
- Working-class experience is central to the drama, showing how ordinary people from a small Lancashire town bore the catastrophic human cost of WWI